MIT scientists design molecular-based chips

a staff writer, 17th March 2010

Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have successfully designed a computer chip comprising hundreds of tiny molecules.

According to the New York Times, the new chip is based on a new technology known as "copolymers" and will allow manufacturers to arrange molecules in intricate patterns on silicon chips.

Karl Berggren, an associate professor of electrical engineering, explained that the copolymer technique was analogous to a scene in the movie "Midnight Run," in which a bounty hunter and criminal "are handcuffed together but can't stand each other."

Indeed, the molecules are constantly attempting to move away each other and therefore "arrange themselves into predictable patterns."

Previously, the concept of self-assembling molecular chips would require a location or destination for the molecules. However, the new technique utilizes "hitching posts" - which encourages the attachment of molecules and allows them to form the required shapes.